CII sets up MSME Covid-19 fund

The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) announced CII COVID Rehabilitation and Relief Fund (CRR) to assist small enterprises or MSMEs in rehabilitation. The industry body took the decision in response to the Coronavirus pandemic.

CII
suggested specific measures to curtail the impact of Coronavirus on the MSME
sector. “Multiple actions need to be taken on extension of bank loans, a
special fund, steps regarding filing of GST and improving welfare of workers.
CII stands ready to support MSME sector in this hour of need through the CII
COVID Rehabilitation and Relief Fund,” said Shreekant Somany, chairman, CII
National Council on MSME.

With MSME
facing a cash crunch, CII requested for additional ad-hoc sanction of working
capital to the tune of 25 per cent of sanctioned limit as a relief measure. The
industry body suggested deferment of EMIs and interest rate on working capital
as well. Setting up of a special MSME Factoring fund to enable MSMEs to
discount their bills to approved retailers in 15 days and permit retailers to
pay in 120 days would help in faster realization, said CII.

Creation of
a corpus by the government to help MSMEs tide over the crisis would help them
to pay wages, according to CII. Extension of NPA norms in genuine cases to 150
days from the present 90 days and if required by industry, ad-hoc limits to an
extent of 25 per cent of sanctioned limits may be allowed by banks on SOS basis
to overcome temporary liquidity crunch, would also provide temporary relief,
said CII.

Measures for improving welfare of the MSME workers
during the temporary shutdown period are required as well, said CII. Some of
these could include supporting laid off workers during the crisis period,
handling the statutory compliance of compensating workers in case of shutdown
and exploring insurance cover options through the Employee State Insurance
Corporation (ESIC), 90 days extension for payment of employer’s contribution of
PF and ESIS, insurance cover or part financing wages for those laid off due to
coronavirus through ESIC or new government schemes, allowing of CSR funds
to support payment of wages to laid off
workers, among others.

Other measures such as extension of period for
declaring NPAs by MSMEs, allowing rollover of terms loans and implementation of
moratorium on EMIs for industrial loans and faster tax refunds, allowing banks
to extend credit limit for MSMEs by 20 per cent at branch level, among others
could significantly ease liquidity and other pressures on the sector and help
the sector cope with the current crisis, said CII.

It has been further proposed by CII that the
government should draw up contingency plans for three periods till March 31 for
next two months till May 31 and then for next two months till July 31. There
should be close monitoring of payment delays by CPSUs to MSMEs through a portal
for complaints and necessary funds are provided and utilized for this purpose
should be ensured.

Banks should be
allowed to extend existing credit limits for MSMEs by 20 per cent at branch
level. Relief should be provided so that credit rating of brands and retailers is not adversely
affected due to delays in repayment of bank loans, interest, EMI, etc.,
together with ensuring that no punitive action is taken by NCLT for delays of repayments
etc. till December 31st 2020, added CII.

CII has 67 per cent of its membership as SME and
works closely with the ministry of MSME. CII organized a special virtual
meeting for its SME members on assessing the impact of COVID-19 in their
businesses and also bring out suggestions to mitigate the adverse impact. Over
100 MSME members from across India participated representing sectors of auto
components, light engineering, forging, electronics, ceramics, construction
equipment, décor solutions, financial services, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, IT
& ITeS, etc.

The MSME
sector is one of the most severely affected sectors, amidst the ongoing
Coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis. Many steps to curtail the outbreak such as
travel bans, closure of malls, theatres and educational institutions have led to
widespread disruptions in economic activity, which in turn has hampered the
business operations of the MSMEs.